Are You Building a Prison Out of Anger?
photo credit: dragonflaiii Right now in my life, I have someone who is really mad at me to the point that they won’t talk to me. The funny thing is, they’re actually angry at me over a misunderstanding. But since they aren’t speaking to me, they have no way of knowing this. Instead, this young person took some he said/she said bullshit to heart, and instead of confronting me, decided they just weren’t going to talk when I do. All this over something that would be resolved if we got all the people concerned in a room and talked for five minutes. My reaction to this anger? To love them anyway, and shrug. If they come around, that’s great. I really love this person and value their impact in my life. If they don’t, oh well. I did the best I could. I sacrificed for them for two years in a way they’ll never know about, that I’ll never throw in their face. Does that make me a saint of some kind? No, I’m a regular person with flaws, just like anyone else. I’ve just learned the folly of long-term anger in my life. And I’ve learned that every action you take is a choice, and I can choose not to feel defeated, guilty, angry, sad, or distanced from a person due to how they feel about me. Did I initially react with hurt? Yes. But it was for five seconds, not minutes or hours. I’m not a cold or
